Window films come in a huge variety of patterns and levels of translucency.  Window films are also friendly for “do-it-yourselfers”.  Here are some ideas and resources.  Whether your home is traditional or contemporary, you’ll find styles to suit.

Design by Maria Liv From the Scandinavian Design Center

The design above is by Maria Liv.  This design and others by Maria Liv are available online from the Scandinavian Design Center.

By Strossel Design

Window Film by Strossel Design

The two designs above are  by Strossel Design and others by Strossel Design are also available online from the Scandinavian Design Center as well as from Rare Device.

The above designs are available in set sizes.  If you want more flexibility to customize a design to your window or door or to design your own, check out Window Film Factory.   Below are 2 of their stock designs but they will be customized for your window size.

Stock Design From Window Film Factory

Stock Design From Window Film Factory

You can also use this company for written messages, house numbers or other alpha-numeric designs.

I used Decorative Films for the simple frosted film for the closet doors, below.  They have a wide variety of films including floral patterns, stained glass patterns, and architectural patterns all of which can be ordered in a variety of widths and cut to the foot.

Frosted Film for Closet Doors

I recommend that you use self-clinging window film without adhesive.  The directions are quite easy:
1. Cut the right size of the film and remove backpaper.
2. Spray window with water and soap solution.
Apply the film to the window and press bubbles out with a cloth or window scraper.
The film is easy to remove without leaving a trace.
I will advise that larger windows can be hard to do and you’ll need help.  It took two of us to apply the film to the doors, above.  Each panel was approximately 80 x 36.  We probably could have used a 3rd hand.  We also found it easier with these large expanses to remove the doors and lay them flat on saw horses.

I plan to use the left-over film to create a custom design on one of my own windows.  I’ll apply the film as a single piece and then cut out designs with a utility knife.  I’ll show you pictures when I’m done.

By the way, you can also pick up static cling window films at Home Depot and Lowes — you’ll just have less of a selection.

Many of us love the “charm” of an older home – one built before 1930.  For the most part what we’re responding to is the architectural detailing that comes from building without stock parts and without a production mentality.  In today’s home, such detailing is no less desirable – whether it’s funky, traditional, or rustic.

Funky:

Painted Lumber Hide Electrical Wires

In my sculpture studio, above, I used painted lumber to hide electrical wires – both to the fluorescent fixtures and to the low voltage track lighting.  This action was actually a cost savings action; it was cheaper to hide the wires behind lumber than to fish them through old plaster ceilings.  Even adding the additional decorative lumber – one of the legs of the large angle plus the 4 cross pieces – was cheaper than fishing the wires through the ceiling.  The labor of painting the lumber was my sweat equity.  2 additional cost savings actions – seen above and below – included (1) a piece of ¼” luan to hide the hole created where we took down a wall – painted bright aqua, and (2) a graphic painted on the wall and ceiling to disguise a ceiling that’s badly out of level.  The white railing is hung level (used as a flexible hanging rail for both pictures and shelving).  It’s 5” closer to the ceiling at its end than at the corner.  The bright graphic helps disguise this flaw of a hundred year old building.

Graphics Disquise Sloped Ceiling

The ceiling of Spin Pizza, below, again uses raw lumber to hide a mish-mash of ceiling elements.  The overall effect is actually calming in it’s randomness.  Read article

Ceiling Spin Pizza

Traditional:

A soffit is often used to help define areas within a room.  In the rendering, below, I plan to use a soffit to define a foyer in a home in Bethesda, MD where the front door opens directly into the living room.  The new foyer is defined on one side by a stained glass panel and on the other side by a new coat closet and an alcove with a door to a new powder room.  By painting the soffit a dark charcoal and the walls of the foyer a darker gray than the rest of the living room, the foyer feels enclosed.  You get a feeling of expansion as you walk into the living room.  A stone floor in the foyer completes the look.  The stone floor and outfitted coat closet allows the foyer to functions as a mud room entry.

Soffit used To Define Foyer

In the photo, below, a gentle pearl color on the sloped ceiling and cove lighting give a special effect.

Soft Pearl Ceiling Highlighted With Cove Lighting

And below we, again, use a darker color on the soffit of a faux tray ceiling.

Dark Soffit Helps Define Tray Ceiling

A 3-part crown molding sets off the ceiling, below, in a 1905 vernacular farmhouse.

3-Part Crown Molding

Rustic or Country:

Wood plank ceilings are a common element in rustic construction.  Below are two images from a blog posting on cottage style from completely-costal.com.  Go to the original post and notice that almost all the ceilings are decorated – usually with painted or unpainted wooden planks.

Painted Plank Ceiling

Painted Plank Ceiling

Whichever style makes sense for your home, special details on the ceiling or that frame the ceiling can lend immeasurable charm to your home.

Images courtesy of Braitman Design/Build unless noted.

]]> http://www.braitmandesign.com/home-remodeling/the-decorated-ceiling-it%e2%80%99s-all-in-the-details/feed/ 0 http://www.braitmandesign.com/art-furnshings/decorating-with-family-photos/ http://www.braitmandesign.com/art-furnshings/decorating-with-family-photos/#comments Wed, 04 Nov 2009 04:37:24 +0000 Jackie Braitman http://www.braitmandesign.com/blog/?p=1437 Sometimes all you need to do is re-arrange the pictures on your wall to improve your home’s style.

Horizontal Row of Old Black & White Photos

In this home, prior to our remodel, family pictures took up almost all the wall space.  One problem with this arrangement is that usually only close family members are interested in continually looking at your family pictures.  Second, squeezing in additional photos can make the arrangement awkward.  Finally, too much of a good thing makes it hard to concentrate — there’s no focal point and so you end up seeing nothing.

Instead, we made 3 big changes after the remodel.  First, we took old black and white photos (2-4 generations old) in identical frames and lined them up as a horizontal element to contrast with the vertical plane and bulk of the new fireplace surround.  The black and white images spark conversation with guests in ways that the newer family photos packed onto the walls didn’t.  For just a small twist, we included a single recent softly colored photo.

We Used a Single Softly Colored Photo for Contract

We moved the more recent family photos to the private rooms of the house including the hallway on the bedroom level.  In the master bedroom, we again used the technique of a single horizontal plane but this time we used all more recent color photos.  In the same way we included a single color photo in the living room, we used an intense color-field within one of the picture frames to create interest.

Use an burst of color to break up the continuity

In the hallway, we included two picture ledges and packed them full of photos.  The over-packed picture ledges create an intimacy that can be lacking in wall-hung displays.  You see different things each time you look and you’re invited to rearrange the photos or to easily rotate them.

A Jam-Packed Double Photo Ledge

In the family room we used a double row of photos sometimes interspersed with some larger portraits.  In 2 spots we left the frame blank – again as a whimsical touch to attract conversation and second glances.

Leave a Blank Frame As A Point of Contrast

While these changes came as a result of a remodeling project.  A new coat of paint and some thoughtful rearranging of your own family photos might be just what it takes to rejuvenate your style.

Images courtesy of Braitman Design/Build.

Stained Glass Window To Block View of Close Neighbor

I’ve moved to a neighborhood built at the turn of the 20th Century — houses built from about 1880 – 1920’s and protected by an Historic Preservation District.  Many of these homes, including mine, have windows that look into a neighbor’s house.  The house I moved from (3 blocks away) and the one I moved into both have windows that are 7′ to 15′ from the neighbor’s windows.  Plus the windows are aligned so we would be part of each other’s daily lives if we didn’t block the views.  The quickest and cheapest solution is often drapery and curtains which help ensure privacy but also often block light and a sense of space.    Below are some strategies I’ve used to block a view.  I would love to hear about ways you’ve successfully blocked a view while retaining daylight and airiness. 

I’m a glass artist so I’ve very successfully used art glass windows to block the view of too close neighbors.  [See above and below].  In both cases, though, skylights, windows or doors just around the corner on an adjacent plane banish any feelings of claustrophobia that come from not being able to see out.

Art Glass Windows Block View of Too Close Neighbor

In southern California, where I lived for several years, the dense semi-tropical vegetation could successfully block a close neighbor and still allow light and privacy — houses were also often 1 story which made it easier.  But in much of the country, it’s harder to block views with vegetation without also blocking light and a sense of space.  In the dining room, we used a mix of deciduous and evergreen shrubs to block the view of the alley 7 feet away. 

Vegetation Blocks the View of the Alley

In the home, below, we created a patio bounded by a pergola with foliage inside and outside the pergola to create privacy from a busy street.  In one particular place we also hung stained glass panels.  This strategy, of course, only works if you have a lot of space to work with.  But when you do, it’s a great way to keep eyes focused away from your windows and to create a greater sense of space and separation from the world. 

Using a Garden Room to Create Privacy & Block Views

Stained Glass Garden Panel to Block a View

So tell me about your ideas.  I would love to include your ideas and images in a future article.  You can’t yet upload images but I’ll definitely get in touch with you if you tell me you have images and tell you how to get them to me.

All images courtesy of Braitman Design/Build